Interpreting and generating input and output gestures

ABSTRACT

Aspects of the present invention disclose a method, computer program product, and system for interpreting text entry for an input/output device. The method includes one or more processors receiving input from a set of sensors. The sensors are grouped in segments corresponding to a finger of a user. The method further includes one or more processors identifying input by a user of a gesture into a sensor of the set of sensors. The method further includes one or more sensors determining a first alphanumeric character that corresponds to the identified gesture input by the user. The method further includes one or more processes generating an input stream of alphanumeric characters, the input stream comprising the determined first alphanumeric character that corresponds to the identified gesture and one or more additional alphanumeric characters determined from identified gestures input by the user.

BACKGROUND

The present invention relates generally to the field of data entry, andmore particularly to interpreting text entry into an input/outputdevice.

Text messaging, or texting, is the act of composing and sendingelectronic messages, typically consisting of alphabetic and numericcharacters, between two or more users of mobile phones, fixed devices(e.g., desktop computers), or portable devices (e.g., tablet computersor smartphones). While text messages are usually sent over a phonenetwork, due to the convergence between the telecommunication andbroadcasting industries in the 2000 s, text messages may also be sentvia a cable network or Local Area Network. The term originally referredto messages sent using the Short Message Service (SMS). It has grownbeyond alphanumeric text to include multimedia messages (known as MMS)containing digital images, videos, and sound content, as well asideograms known as emoji (happy faces and other icons).

Text messages are used by youth and adults for personal, family, andsocial purposes and in business, government, and non-governmentalorganizations for communication between colleagues. As with e-mailing,the sending of short informal messages has become an accepted part ofmany cultures. This makes texting a quick and easy way to communicatewith friends and colleagues, including in contexts where a phone callwould be impolite or inappropriate (e.g., calling very late at night orwhen one knows the other person is busy with family or work activities).Like e-mail and voice mail, and unlike landline or mobile phone calls(in which the caller hopes to speak directly with the recipient),texting does not require the caller and recipient to both be free at thesame moment; this permits communication even between busy individuals.Text messages can also be used to interact with automated systems, forexample, to order products or services from e-commerce websites or toparticipate in online contests. Advertisers and service providers usedirect text marketing to send messages to mobile phone users aboutpromotions, payment due dates, and other notifications instead of usingpostal mail, e-mail, or voicemail.

SUMMARY

According to one embodiment of the present invention, a method forinterpreting text entry for an input/output device is provided. Themethod for interpreting text entry for an input/output device mayinclude one or more processors receiving input from a set of sensors.The sensors are grouped in segments corresponding to a finger of a user.The method further includes one or more processors identifying input bya user of a gesture into a sensor of the set of sensors. The methodfurther includes one or more sensors determining a first alphanumericcharacter that corresponds to the identified gesture input by the user.The method further includes one or more processes generating an inputstream of alphanumeric characters, the input stream comprising thedetermined first alphanumeric character that corresponds to theidentified gesture and one or more additional alphanumeric charactersdetermined from identified gestures input by the user.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram illustrating a distributed dataprocessing environment, in accordance with an embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart depicting operational steps of a input/outputprogram for interpreting gestures made by the digits on the hand andsending output as gestures based on an alphabet code executing on aclient device within the distributed data processing environment of FIG.1, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 illustrates an example of input/output device 110, in accordancewith an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of components of the proxy server computerexecuting the intelligent mapping program, in accordance with anembodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Example embodiments, in accordance with the present invention, will nowbe described in detail with reference to the Figures. FIG. 1 is afunctional block diagram, general designated 100, illustrating adistributed data processing environment. Distributed data processingenvironment 100 includes Input/Output (I/O) device 110, client device120, interconnected with network 185.

Input/output device 110 may be a glove like orientation of a set ofsensors and/or actuators, on one or both hands of a user, that may becapable of interacting with client device 120 through network 185. Inone embodiment, I/O device 110 may be a grouping of finger tip andfinger segment sticker like attachments on both sets of fingers. Inanother embodiment, I/O device 110 may be configured with a sensor onthe thumb. In this embodiment, I/O device 110 would have five sensors,one on each fingertip, in total. In general, I/O device 110 is agrouping of sensors that are capable of interpreting, translating,receiving, and transmitting hand and finger movements that are directedtoward swiping gestures, pressing motions, and vibration motions.

I/O device 110 includes four sensor groupings made up of individual I/Osensor 105. Each individual sensor has the capability of generating fivegestures. A gesture is sensory input in an up, down, left, rightdirection or pressing motion. I/O device 110 includes a plurality ofsensor groupings, such as I/O sensor group location 101 located on theforefinger, I/O sensor group location 102 located on the middle finger,I/O sensor group location 103 located on the ring finger, and I/O sensorgroup location 104 located on the pinky finger. I/O program 200 caninterpret input from each individual sensor, in each grouping,differently. In one embodiment, I/O program 200 interprets input fromI/O sensor group location 101 as the alphanumeric characters A-I, witheach individual sensor in the grouping corresponding to a set of threeindividual alpha numeric characters. For example, a first sensor wouldreceive input as alpha numeric characters A-C, while a second sensor inI/O sensor group location 101 are alpha numeric characters D-F, and athird sensor in I/O sensor group location 101 interprets input as alphanumeric characters G-I.

In another embodiment, I/O sensor group location 101 is used as theprimary input device to interact with the GUI of a client device. Forexample, I/O sensor group location 101 is used to scroll a web page bymoving the user thumb over I/O sensor group location 101 in a scrollinggesture. In another embodiment, a user can utilize I/O sensor grouplocation 101 to open and close applications via the GUI of a clientdevice. For example, I/O grouping 101 can receive an input that I/Oprogram 200 interprets as a pressing gesture. The pressing gesture cansend a notification to another user, change between selection items,switch between which device the program communicates between, etc.

In yet another embodiment, I/O device 110 is configured to receiveoutput from a client device on I/O sensor group location 103 and I/Osensor group location 104, while simultaneously receiving input from auser on I/O sensor group location 101 and I/O sensor group location 102.In this example, I/O sensor group location 103 and I/O sensor grouplocation 104 receive output from a client device and generate vibrationsto the individual sensors. At the same time I/O device 110 is receivingvibration output in the specified sensor group locations, I/O device 110is receiving and transmitting input in the form of swiping motions andpressing motions from a user on I/O sensor group location 101 and I/Osensor group location 102.

I/O device 110 receives sensory information from I/O program 200. I/Oprogram 200 orients I/O device 110 according to user preferences storedon a storage device. In one embodiment, I/O program 200 executes acalibration sequence prior to operation by prompting the user topractice each gesture on each sensor so that I/O program 200 canaccurately interpret input from the user. For example, the user wouldpractice performing each gesture on each sensor a minimum of threetimes. In another embodiment, I/O program 200 queries the user to createa profile to be saved and accessed by I/O device 110 through I/O program200. In this example, after the calibration, I/O program 200 saves theuser profile on a storage device (e.g., configuration information 170).

Client device 120 may be a desktop computer, a laptop computer, a tabletcomputer, a specialized computer server, a smartphone, wearable device(e.g., smart watch, personal fitness device, personal safety device), orany programmable computer system known in the art with an interactivedisplay or any other computer system known in the art. In general,client device 120 is representative of any programmable electronicdevice or combination of programmable electronic devices capable ofexecuting machine readable program instructions and communicating withusers of other electronic devices via network 185. Client device 120 mayinclude components, as depicted and described in further detail withrespect to FIG. 1, in accordance with embodiments of the presentinvention. In one embodiment, client device 120 includes graphical userinterface 130, I/O program 200, and any other electronic devices notillustrated in FIG. 1, via network 185. The various programs on clientdevice 120 include a web browser, an electronic mail client, securitysoftware (e.g., a firewall program, a geo-locating program, anencryption program, etc.), an instant messaging (IM) application (app),and a communication (e.g., phone) application.

In one embodiment, graphical user interface 130 operates on clientdevice 120. In another embodiment, graphical user interface 130 operateson another computer in a server based setting, for example, on a servercomputer. In yet another embodiment, graphical user interface 130operates on client device 120 simultaneously with a server computerinterconnected through network 185. Graphical user interface 130 may beany user interface used to access information from client device 120,such as information gathered or produced by I/O program 200 andgenerated from I/O device 110. Additionally, graphical user interface130 may be any user interface used to supply information to clientdevice 120, such as information supplied by a user to be used by I/Oprogram 200. In some embodiments, graphical user interface 130 may be ageneric web browser used to retrieve, present, and negotiate resourcesfrom the Internet. In other embodiments, graphical user interface 130may be a software or application that enables a user at client device120 access to network 185.

In yet another embodiment, a user of client device 120 can interact withgraphical user interface 130 through a touch screen that performs asboth an input device to a graphical user interface (GUI) and as anoutput device (i.e., an electronic display) presenting a plurality oficons associated with software applications or images depicting theexecuting software application. Optionally, a software application(e.g., a web browser) can generate graphical user interface 130operating within client device 120. Graphical user interface 130 acceptsinput from a plurality of input/output (I/O) devices including, but notlimited to, a tactile sensor interface (e.g., a touch screen or atouchpad) referred to as a multi-touch display. An I/O deviceinterfacing with graphical user interface 130 may be connected to I/Odevice 110, which may operate utilizing wired (e.g., USB port) orwireless network communications (e.g., infrared, NFC, etc.). I/O device110 may include components, as depicted and described in further detailwith respect to FIG. 4, in accordance with embodiments of the presentinvention.

Server 150 may be a desktop computer, a laptop computer, a tabletcomputer, a specialized computer server, a smartphone, or any othercomputer system known in the art. In certain embodiments, server 150represents a computer system utilizing clustered computers andcomponents that act as a single pool of seamless resources when accessedthrough network 185, as is common in data centers and with cloudcomputing applications. In general, server 150 is representative of anyprogrammable electronic device or combination of programmable electronicdevices capable of executing machine readable program instructions andcommunicating with other computer devices via a network. In thisembodiment, server 150 is accessible by client device 120 and any otherelectronic devices not illustrated in FIG. 1, via network 185.

Configuration information 170 located on client device 120, representsany type of storage device capable of storing data that is accessed andutilized by I/O program 200. In other embodiments, configurationinformation 170 represents multiple storage devices within server 150.Configuration information 170 stores information such as, but notlimited to, user information, account information, location information,notification procedures of I/O device 110, and notification procedureparameters for I/O device 110. A user executes the calibration sequenceprior to operating I/O device 110. User profile information is stored inconfiguration information 170. I/O program 200, through input from I/Odevice 110, learns, over time, and adapts to the users preferred methodof input. Configuration information 170 stores, and updates the userprofile in response to changes in input variations detected from I/Oprogram 200, via I/O device 110, through the user operating I/O device110 over time.

In general, network 185 can be any combination of connections andprotocols that will support communications among client device 120.Network 185 can include, for example, a local area network (LAN), a widearea network (WAN), such as the Internet, a cellular network, or anycombination of the preceding, and can further include wired, wireless,and/or fiber optic connections. In one embodiment, I/O program 200 canbe a web service accessible via network 185 to a user of anothercomputing device not shown in FIG. 1.

In one embodiment, input/output program 200 (I/O program 200) operateson client device 120. In another embodiment, I/O program 200 operates onanother computer in a server based setting, for example on Server 150.In yet another embodiment, I/O program 200 operates on client device 120simultaneously with Server 150 interconnected through network 185. I/Oprogram 200 provides the capability to allow the user to interpret inputfrom and generate output to a glove like device, such as I/O device 110.In another embodiment, I/O program 200 allows the user to interpret andwrite glyph/text symbols, non glyph/non-text input and output inconjunction with a computing device, such as client device 120.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart depicting operational steps of I/O program 200, aprogram for interpreting input from and generating output to a glovelike device (e.g., I/O device 110), in accordance with an embodiment ofthe present invention. In one embodiment, I/O program 200 utilizesinformation from configuration information 170 (e.g., a user profile,user preferences, sensor configuration, etc.) associated with the userprofile to interpret input to I/O device 110 and generate output to I/Odevice 110. In this embodiment, while the program has been initiatedthrough operation of I/O device 110, I/O program 200 executes a feedbackloop with I/O device 110, and configuration information 170, to orientI/O device 110 sensors to the learned input particular to the userprofile. I/O program 200 syncs with other existing programs on clientdevice 120 for a particular user profile. I/O program 200,simultaneously, continually updates configuration information 170 as itcontinues to learn the users input evolution into I/O device 110.

I/O program 200 receives input from a set of sensors on the I/O device(220). FIG. 3 depicts I/O device 300. In this embodiment, I/O device 300is a glove like device that includes fingers 310, 320, 330, 340, and,the thumb, 350. Finger 310 includes individual sensors 312, 314, and316. Finger 320 includes sensors 322, 324, and 326. Finger 330 includessensors 322, 334, and 336. Finger 340 includes sensors 342, 344, and346. Sensors 312, 314, and 316 are representative of the previouslymentioned sensors. The sensors are capable of receiving input andproviding output. In this example, thumb 350 is capable of interactingwith and generating gestures on each of the sensors. In yet anotherembodiment, I/O device 300 may permit the input of actions, such asscroll up, scroll down, switch the cursor pointer to another field. Inthis example, I/O program 200 may be configured into this orientation bya predetermined mode for activation gesture, such as pressing the indexfingertip sensor 312 with thumb 350.

In one embodiment, I/O program 200 receives (analyzes) the input fromsensor 312. In this example, I/O program 200 detects input from sensor312 catalyzed by thumb 350 to input a sequence of gestures into sensors312, 322, and 332. I/O program 200 may receive up to five gestures persensor. In another embodiment, a user may use thumb 350 to centre-tapsensor 314.

I/O program 200 interprets the input and maps a gesture on a particularsensor (230). In this example, as previously discussed with regard toFIG. 3, I/O program 200 interprets gestures, made by the user, on I/Odevice 300 by thumb 350. In one embodiment, I/O program 200 translatesthe gesture and maps the character onto GUI 130. In this example, I/Oprogram 200 accesses configuration information 170, interprets andtranslates each gesture made by a user into a character/glyph or action.In another embodiment, I/O program 200 has the capability to detect andinterpret, at minimum, five gestures, made by the user, per sensor. Forexample, I/O program 200 can interpret, from the user, a thumb 350 swipeon sensor 312 in an upward direction, a downward direction, a leftwarddirection, a rightward direction, and a centre tap. In this example, acentre tap made by thumb 350 of the user on sensor 312 on the tip of theindex finger is interpreted by I/O program 200 and mapped on GUI 130 onclient device 120 as the alphanumeric character “A.”

In another embodiment, I/O program 200 interprets the input, a centertap by thumb 350 on sensor 332, translates the gesture into analphanumeric character “Y”, and maps the character on GUI 130 on clientdevice 120. In another example, I/O program 200 interprets, translates,and maps a left swipe gesture by thumb 350 on sensor 316 as thealphanumeric character “E.” In another example, I/O program 200interprets the input, a down swipe by thumb 350 on sensor 334, andtranslates the gesture and maps the character “S” on GUI 130 on clientdevice 120.

I/O program 200 maps an input gesture on a sensor 312. In thisembodiment, I/O program 200 maps a single gesture from sensor 312 to asingle alphanumeric character. In this example, as previously discussedwith regard to FIG. 3, I/O program 200 interprets the action by a user,translates the input into the alphanumeric character “A”, and then mapsthe alpha numeric character on GUI 130 on client device 120.

I/O program 200 builds an input stream (240). In one embodiment, I/Oprogram 200 simultaneously builds and passes an input stream onto GUI130 on client device 120. The input stream is visible to the user viaGUI 130. In this example, I/O program 200 generates a stream of alphanumeric characters into a SMS text message on GUI 130. With reference tothe previous step, 230, the complete input stream on GUI 130 on clientdevice 120 displays the combination of alphanumeric characters as “YES.”As previously discussed, with regard to FIG. 3, I/O program 200 maps thesingle gestures, from repeating the actions described in step 230, onsensors, such as 312, to a single character on GUI 130. In this example,I/O program 200 populates GUI 130, via input derived from I/O device300, with a stream of alphanumeric characters, generated from therepeated actions described in step 230, and builds the input stream toGUI 130 on a computing device, such as client device 120. In anotherembodiment, I/O program 200 builds an input stream and passes the streamto GUI 130 of client device 120 from a user action interacting with atouchscreen. In this example, the user has toggled I/O device 300, orconfiguration information 170 provides I/O program 200 with informationfrom the user profile to interpret user input from thumb 350 withsensors on finger 310, finger 320, finger 330, and finger 340 asbuilding actions as a game controller input for a user to seamlesslyinteract with the movements of a video game on GUI 130 on client device120.

I/O program 200 receives an output stream from a computing device (250).In one embodiment, I/O program 200 receives input from client device120. In this example, I/O device 110 receives output, in the form of analert, from I/O program 200 on client device 120. Client device 120sends data to I/O program 200 in the form of a SMS text messagereceived. I/O program 200 translates the data from client device 120into output that is intelligible to the user as vibrations via I/Odevice 300 on a sensor on fingers 310, 320, 330, and 340.

I/O program 200 extracts each character from the output stream insequential order and maps each character to a vibration sequence on aparticular sensor (260). In this embodiment, I/O program 200 translatestext, character by character, into a series of vibrations on theactuators that match the equivalent input gestures. In this example, asreferenced from FIG. 3, I/O program 200 maps the output to sensor 334 onI/O device 300, via the user profile in configuration information 170,in the form of a vibration. In another embodiment, I/O program 200interprets another language from another computing device and translatesthe language into English alphanumeric character by alphanumericcharacter received by I/O device 300.

I/O program 200 actuates the vibration sequence (270). With reference toFIG. 3, finger 320 of I/O device 300 generates a sequence of vibrationson sensor 332, 334, and 336 that are understood by the user. In oneembodiment, I/O program 200 outputs the alphanumeric character “A” byactivating the centre actuator on sensor 332 to vibrate followed (e.g.,0.3 seconds later) with an instruction for the actuator on sensor 334,immediately above, to vibrate. In this example, I/O program 200 outputsvibrations to I/O device 300 that the user interprets using userpreferences from configuration information 170. In an embodiment, I/Oprogram 200 receives output from client device 120 and send the outputto I/O device 300. Sensor 334 vibrates for a length of time, through theuser profile in configuration information 170, that the user interpretsas generating the alphanumeric character “B.”

FIG. 4 depicts computer system 400, where computer system 400 representsa computer system in distributed data processing environment 100. I/O110 represents an example of a computer system in distributed dataprocessing environment 100, where I/O 110 includes, input/output program200. Computer system 400 includes processors 404, cache 416, memory 406,persistent storage 408, communications unit 410, input/output (I/O)interface(s) 412, and communications fabric 402. Communications fabric402 provides communications between cache 416, memory 406, persistentstorage 408, communications unit 410, and input/output (I/O)interface(s) 412. Communications fabric 402 can be implemented with anyarchitecture designed for passing data and/or control informationbetween processors (such as microprocessors, communications and networkprocessors, etc.), system memory, peripheral devices, and any otherhardware components within a system. For example, communications fabric402 can be implemented with one or more buses or a crossbar switch.

Memory 406 and persistent storage 408 are computer readable storagemedia. In this embodiment, memory 406 includes random access memory(RAM). In general, memory 406 can include any suitable volatile ornon-volatile computer readable storage media. Cache 416 is a fast memorythat enhances the performance of processors 404 by holding recentlyaccessed data, and data near recently accessed data, from memory 406.

Program instructions and data used to practice embodiments of thepresent invention may be stored in persistent storage 408 and in memory406 for execution by one or more of the respective processors 404 viacache 416. In an embodiment, persistent storage 408 includes a magnetichard disk drive. Alternatively, or in addition to a magnetic hard diskdrive, persistent storage 408 can include a solid state hard drive, asemiconductor storage device, read-only memory (ROM), erasableprogrammable read-only memory (EPROM), flash memory, or any othercomputer readable storage media that is capable of storing programinstructions or digital information.

The media used by persistent storage 408 may also be removable. Forexample, a removable hard drive may be used for persistent storage 408.Other examples include optical and magnetic disks, thumb drives, andsmart cards that are inserted into a drive for transfer onto anothercomputer readable storage medium that is also part of persistent storage408.

Communications unit 410, in these examples, provides for communicationswith other data processing systems or devices. In these examples,communications unit 410 includes one or more network interface cards.Communications unit 410 may provide communications through the use ofeither or both physical and wireless communications links. Programinstructions and data used to practice embodiments of the presentinvention may be downloaded to persistent storage 408 throughcommunications unit 410.

I/O interface(s) 412 allows for input and output of data with otherdevices that may be connected to each computer system. For example, I/Ointerface 412 may provide a connection to external devices 418 such as akeyboard, keypad, a touch screen, and/or some other suitable inputdevice. External devices 418 can also include portable computer readablestorage media such as, for example, thumb drives, portable optical ormagnetic disks, and memory cards. Software and data used to practiceembodiments of the present invention can be stored on such portablecomputer readable storage media and can be loaded onto persistentstorage 408 via I/O interface(s) 412. I/O interface(s) 412 also connectto display 420.

Display 420 provides a mechanism to display data to a user and may be,for example, a computer monitor.

The programs described herein are identified based upon the applicationfor which they are implemented in a specific embodiment of theinvention. However, it should be appreciated that any particular programnomenclature herein is used merely for convenience, and thus theinvention should not be limited to use solely in any specificapplication identified and/or implied by such nomenclature.

The present invention may be a system, a method, and/or a computerprogram product. The computer program product may include a computerreadable storage medium (or media) having computer readable programinstructions thereon for causing a processor to carry out aspects of thepresent invention.

The computer readable storage medium can be a tangible device that canretain and store instructions for use by an instruction executiondevice. The computer readable storage medium may be, for example, but isnot limited to, an electronic storage device, a magnetic storage device,an optical storage device, an electromagnetic storage device, asemiconductor storage device, or any suitable combination of theforegoing. A non-exhaustive list of more specific examples of thecomputer readable storage medium includes the following: a portablecomputer diskette, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), aread-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROMor Flash memory), a static random access memory (SRAM), a portablecompact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), a digital versatile disk (DVD),a memory stick, a floppy disk, a mechanically encoded device such aspunch-cards or raised structures in a groove having instructionsrecorded thereon, and any suitable combination of the foregoing. Acomputer readable storage medium, as used herein, is not to be construedas being transitory signals per se, such as radio waves or other freelypropagating electromagnetic waves, electromagnetic waves propagatingthrough a waveguide or other transmission media (e.g., light pulsespassing through a fiber-optic cable), or electrical signals transmittedthrough a wire.

Computer readable program instructions described herein can bedownloaded to respective computing/processing devices from a computerreadable storage medium or to an external computer or external storagedevice via a network, for example, the Internet, a local area network, awide area network and/or a wireless network. The network may comprisecopper transmission cables, optical transmission fibers, wirelesstransmission, routers, firewalls, switches, gateway computers and/oredge servers. A network adapter card or network interface in eachcomputing/processing device receives computer readable programinstructions from the network and forwards the computer readable programinstructions for storage in a computer readable storage medium withinthe respective computing/processing device.

Computer readable program instructions for carrying out operations ofthe present invention may be assembler instructions,instruction-set-architecture (ISA) instructions, machine instructions,machine dependent instructions, microcode, firmware instructions,state-setting data, or either source code or object code written in anycombination of one or more programming languages, including an objectoriented programming language such as Smalltalk, C++ or the like, andconventional procedural programming languages, such as the “C”programming language or similar programming languages. The computerreadable program instructions may execute entirely on the user'scomputer, partly on the user's computer, as a stand-alone softwarepackage, partly on the user's computer and partly on a remote computeror entirely on the remote computer or server. In the latter scenario,the remote computer may be connected to the user's computer through anytype of network, including a local area network (LAN) or a wide areanetwork (WAN), or the connection may be made to an external computer(for example, through the Internet using an Internet Service Provider).In some embodiments, electronic circuitry including, for example,programmable logic circuitry, field-programmable gate arrays (FPGA), orprogrammable logic arrays (PLA) may execute the computer readableprogram instructions by utilizing state information of the computerreadable program instructions to personalize the electronic circuitry,in order to perform aspects of the present invention.

Aspects of the present invention are described herein with reference toflowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams of methods, apparatus(systems), and computer program products according to embodiments of theinvention. It will be understood that each block of the flowchartillustrations and/or block diagrams, and combinations of blocks in theflowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, can be implemented bycomputer readable program instructions.

These computer readable program instructions may be provided to aprocessor of a general purpose computer, special purpose computer, orother programmable data processing apparatus to produce a machine, suchthat the instructions, which execute via the processor of the computeror other programmable data processing apparatus, create means forimplementing the functions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or blockdiagram block or blocks. These computer readable program instructionsmay also be stored in a computer readable storage medium that can directa computer, a programmable data processing apparatus, and/or otherdevices to function in a particular manner, such that the computerreadable storage medium having instructions stored therein comprises anarticle of manufacture including instructions which implement aspects ofthe function/act specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram blockor blocks.

The computer readable program instructions may also be loaded onto acomputer, other programmable data processing apparatus, or other deviceto cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer,other programmable apparatus or other device to produce a computerimplemented process, such that the instructions which execute on thecomputer, other programmable apparatus, or other device implement thefunctions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block orblocks.

The flowchart and block diagrams in the Figures illustrate thearchitecture, functionality, and operation of possible implementationsof systems, methods, and computer program products according to variousembodiments of the present invention. In this regard, each block in theflowchart or block diagrams may represent a module, segment, or portionof instructions, which comprises one or more executable instructions forimplementing the specified logical function(s). In some alternativeimplementations, the functions noted in the block may occur out of theorder noted in the figures. For example, two blocks shown in successionmay, in fact, be executed substantially concurrently, or the blocks maysometimes be executed in the reverse order, depending upon thefunctionality involved. It will also be noted that each block of theblock diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, and combinations of blocksin the block diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, can be implementedby special purpose hardware-based systems that perform the specifiedfunctions or acts or carry out combinations of special purpose hardwareand computer instructions.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for interpreting text entry for aninput/output device, the method comprising: receiving, by one or moreprocessors, input from a set of sensors, wherein the sensors are groupedin segments corresponding to a finger of a user; identifying, by one ormore processors, input, by a user, of a gesture into a sensor of the setof sensors; determining, by one or more processors, a first alphanumericcharacter that corresponds to the identified gesture input by the user;generating, by one or more processors, an input stream of alphanumericcharacters, the input stream comprising the determined firstalphanumeric character that corresponds to the identified gesture andone or more additional alphanumeric characters determined fromidentified gestures input by the user; receiving, by one or moreprocessors, an output stream from a computing device; extracting, by oneor more processors, a second alphanumeric character from the outputstream; determining, by one or more processors, a vibration sequence anda corresponding sensor of the set of sensors that corresponds to thesecond alphanumeric character; and actuating, by one or more processors,the determined vibration sequence on the corresponding sensor.
 2. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the identified gesture input by the user isselected from the group consisting of: a center up gesture on a sensor,a center down gesture on a sensor, a center left gesture on a sensor, acenter right gesture on a sensor, a diagonal left up gesture on asensor, a diagonal right up gesture on a sensor, a diagonal right downgesture on a sensor, a diagonal left down gesture on a sensor, a closedfirst gesture, and an open hand gesture.
 3. The method of claim 1,wherein generating an input stream of alpha numeric characters furthercomprises: generating, by one or more processors, a visible input streamcomprising the input stream of alpha numeric characters; and sending thevisible input stream to a display device.
 4. The method of claim 1,further comprising: calibrating, by one or more processors, the set ofsensors to assign one or more alphanumeric characters to one or morecorresponding gestures; and syncing, by one or more processes, a userprofile of the user with pre-existing programs on a computing device,wherein the user profile includes a language associated with the userand a set of alphanumeric characters associated with the user.
 5. Themethod of claim 1, further comprising: sending, by one or moreprocesses, the generated input stream comprising the plurality of alphacharacters to a computing device.
 6. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising: responsive to determining that the user is generating theinput stream, and the computing device is simultaneously providing theoutput stream, delaying, by one or more processors, receipt of theoutput stream from the computing device until after the user hasfinished generating the input stream.